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(Updated 29 July 2010) One common question asked by most parents is how the distance between the Primary school and their homes is computed.

MOE provides schools with an updated list of Home-School distance categories each year, about 2 weeks before the start of the Primary 1 registration process.  Parents are welcome to call up the schools to check their official distance from the school at no cost.

Alternatively, parents can also do it themselves using a variety of services available on the Internet.

Using OneMap.sg

OneMap is an integrated map system for government agencies. According to the information on www.onemap.sg you can use a service call “SchoolQuery” to ” search primary schools within a radius of 1 or 2kms around a particular location in the map. It can also be used to determine if a particular address is within 1 or 2km from any school”

There is also a measure distance tool but this tool comes with a caveat “The measurement result is indicative only. It should not be used as an accurate measurement for official purpose, eg the distance between school and building for Primary One Registration.”

Other Paid services.

• StreetDirectory.  StreetDirectory.com is probably the best known map in Singapore.  Unfortunately, the search for educational institutions feature is not a free service, and users have to pay about $0.54 per request.
  • To use this map, enter the postal code of your residence in the “Search any Location in Singapore:” text input box near the top of the home page.
  • Your home address should be listed as a record in the results page.  Now, under the subsection “Refine search result for Postal XXXXXX”, select “more”.
  • In the next page, under the “Select Landmarks” section, click on “Educational Inst.” and select “Primary School”.

Other Free services. 

• MyLifeStyleMap.  This used to be called CAN.COM.SG, and is operated by Greendot Media, a portal company that owns several online websites.  In many ways, this is the best free alternative because the map data actually comes from SLA itself.  So the results should be quite close to what the schools have.
  • To use this map, enter the postal code of your residence in the “Live Search” text input box of the Map Finder section where it shows the outline of Singapore.
  • Press enter and you should see the map area refresh and zoom in to your residence.
  • Scroll down the page to see the list of properties matching your search.  You should see the full address details of your residence.
  • Click on the “What’s Nearby” link belonging to that record.
  • Select the “Primary Schools” checkbox and click on the “Go” button.
  • You should see the list of Primary Schools within a radius of 3km from your home address, sorted in ascending order of distance.  Each school entry will have a distance value showing the linear distance between the school and your residence.
• StreetDB.  StreetDB.com is a new site born of a joint collaboration between SingaporeExpats.com and AGIS, a local mapping company.
  • To use this map, enter the postal code of your residence in the “Search location in Singapore” text input box right at the top of the StreetDB.com front page.
  • Press enter and you should see a list of properties matching your search.
  • Click on the property matching your residence.  You should see a map zoomed in and centered around your residence.
  • Under the “Search Nearest Amenities” section on the right, select “School & Institution”, and press the “Submit” button.
  • You should see the list of all schools (including Secondary and other institutions) displayed, along with a distance value showing the linear distance between the school and your residence.